Transfer: Birmingham City Finally Lands ‘£40k per week Naturally Talented Ace To Bolster Their Squad..
A clutch of clubs, including Birmingham City, want to sign Kwame Poku after his Peterborough United contract expires.
Birmingham City are among a number of clubs keen to sign Kwame Poku this summer after the winger’s Peterborough United exit.
Poku has been a stand-out player for Posh in recent years and registered 20 goal contributions – 12 goals and eight assists – in just 27 League One matches last season to earn a place in the Team of the Year.
There has been speculation over his future for some time and Blues are long-term admirers of the Ghana international.
Poku is out of contract and free to find a new club.. However, because Poku won’t turn 24 until the middle of August, Blues and other English sides would have to agree a fee with Peterborough to avoid a tribunal.
It is no secret that Blues have followed Poku for a while. They took a shine to Poku, Ephron Mason-Clark – who has since joined Coventry City – and defender Ronnie Edwards a couple of years ago after a friendly at Peterborough.
Blues looked into signing Poku last summer but they were put off by Peterborough’s asking price.
Twelve months on, Blues want to add Poku to their attacking arsenal for the Championship. The club are mindful of overpaying though and BirminghamLive understands reports that Blues have offered the winger a contract worth £30,000 per week are wide of the mark.
The latest from Barry Fry
Peterborough United’s director of football Barry Fry – a former Blues manager, of course – would like to see Poku move to Championship-bound Blues.
He said: “Birmingham wanted Kwame last summer. Eight clubs wanted Kwame in January. They all wanted him instantly to help promotion pushes, but he was injured so that was a non-starter.
“I know of 12 clubs who now want him, but according to his agent there are 26 clubs at home and abroad after Kwame. Obviously if he moves abroad that’s not good news for us.
“In my opinion Birmingham will make him an offer others won’t be able to match, but his agent seems to think Birmingham won’t be challenging for promotion next season whereas I do. I’ve met the owner and he’s incredibly ambitious.”
The loophole that might cost Blues
Poku reportedly has interest from Scottish duo Celtic and Rangers, plus other teams abroad. That is a problem for Peterborough and Blues.
Due to UEFA’s compensation rules, Peterborough would be entitled to a fraction of the fee that they will bank if Poku joins another English club. That applies to Celtic and Rangers too who can take advantage of the cross-border compensation rules to bag Poku on the cheap.
That could lead to bigger wages for Poku overseas and even a hefty signing-on fee, putting Blues and other interested Championship clubs at a slight disadvantage.
How much will he cost?
Peterborough would likely ask for in excess of £3m after their owner Darragh MacAnthony claimed to have rejected a deal worth up to £6m – £3m up front and £3m in add-ons – for Poku at the end of the January transfer window.
It is worth avoiding the lottery of a tribunal and the good relations between the decision makers at Blues and Peterborough suggests that would be the case if Poku chooses a move to St Andrew’s.
Explaining Peterborough’s stance on it, Fry said: “Kwame is entitled to sign a contract with a new club, but that club would then have to come to us to agree a fee. If we can’t agree then it would go to a tribunal, but I’ve heard there is an eight-to-nine month backlog which is bad news for us. Kwame would be entitled to play for his new club before the compensation fee is set.
“We believe it doesn’t matter who signs him, it would be in that club’s interest to agree a fee without the need for a tribunal. I have written offers in the millions for Kwame which all counts towards a judgement, but if we go to a tribunal the other club would offer tuppence and we’d ask for £10million and we’d then see what happens.”
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